tci ED Coding & Reimbursement Alert - 2011 Issue 4

Observation coding: Observation Under 8 Hours? Consider This Coding Strategy

Remember to leave 99217 off these claims.Observation coding conventions call for a code from the 99218-99220 (Initial observation care, per day, for the evaluation and management of a patient, which requires these 3 key components: ... ) code set for patients in the first day of observation if the service spans more than one calendar date.You should also call on these codes for certain single-day observation stays.When? If you are coding for a Medicare payer, opt for 99218-99220 when the observation lasts less than eight hours on the same calendar date, confirms from Jill M. Young, CPC...

To read the full article, sign in and subscribe to tci ED Coding & Reimbursement Alert.

Thank you for choosing Find-A-Code, please Sign In to remove ads.